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CHAPTER - 2
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English हिंदी বাংলা मराठी தமிழ் తెలుగు മലയാളം
The void stretched endlessly before them, a sea of black pierced only by the dim glow of distant stars. The crew of the Astra Novum had traveled farther than any human before, their eyes fixed on the a reddish-glowing planet, the Aquila Major. Their mission was to land, explore, and return with answers. But the universe had other plans.
The spacecraft trembled as it entered the planet’s volatile atmosphere. Flames roared across the hull, the heat shields glowing white-hot as turbulence battered them like a wrathful god.
“Hold it steady!” - Commander Maya Carter yelled, her voice sharp over the chaos.
“We’re coming in too fast!” - Engineer Arjun Mehta fought to stabilize their descent, his hands flying across the controls.
“Reverse thrusters - NOW!”
The ship groaned, metal straining as its propulsion systems struggled to compensate. The viewports were nothing but swirling chaos thick clouds of sulfuric gases, flashes of lightning, and the blurred surface rushing up to meet them.
A gut-wrenching jolt. A deafening crunch. And then - silence.
The Astra Novum had landed. But the moment of triumph was short-lived.
The power flickered. Systems failed, one after another. The AI flickered with unreadable data. Then, the worst message of all—CRITICAL DAMAGE DETECTED. RELAUNCH IMPOSSIBLE.
A crushing weight settled in their chests. The realization was swift and brutal.
They were trapped.
A massive spacecraft lies battered and scorched on the surface of a desolate, rocky red planet. The sky is thick with swirling sulfuric clouds, illuminated by eerie flashes of lightning. Jagged mountains rise in the distance, and the ground is cracked and dry, with traces of recent impact disturbances. The atmosphere appears hostile, with dust storms forming in the distance. The spacecraft, partially embedded in the terrain, shows visible signs of damage scorched metal, shattered panels, and flickering lights. A sense of isolation and doom looms over the alien landscape.
5 months.
That was the longest their oxygen reserves would last. And there was no rescue coming.
They had to make this planet habitable, or die trying.
Survival became their mission.
Biochemist Zoe Kim and geochemist Karan Das worked tirelessly to analyze the planet’s minerals. They found oxides and peroxides within the rocky surface—compounds that, in theory, could be broken down into oxygen.
Leo Tan, the physicist, ran calculations on the ionosphere, searching for any chemical loophole that could work in their favor.
The team devised a plan: electrolysis. By running electrical currents through the planet’s minerals, they could force oxygen atoms to separate.
The first tests were discouraging - low yields, unstable conditions. The process demanded more energy than their systems could handle. Still, they pressed on, because failure meant suffocation.
Then, the planet made its next move.
A sudden tremor rattled the ground beneath them. The Astra Novum groaned under the stress, dust and loose debris shaking from its damaged hull.
“What the hell was that?”
Sam Brooks, the medic, steadied himself as another tremor rolled through.
Leo checked the seismic scanner. His blood ran cold.
“Something massive just hit the surface—twenty kilometers northeast. The shockwave is heading right for us.”
Before anyone could respond, the ground lurched. The impact sent ripples through the terrain like a monstrous heartbeat. Rocks cracked and split apart. The sky, once a swirling amber, began to change.
Pressure in their suits fluctuated. Humidity spiked. Then,
Drip!!!
A single droplet of water splashed onto Zoe’s visor. Then another & another.
She barely had time to register it before the sky tore open.
It is raining.
But this wasn’t Earth’s rain. The asteroid impact had disturbed something deep beneath the surface, forcing volatile gases into the sky. Chemical reactions rippled through the atmosphere.
The rain was an alien elixir - a blend of hydrogen hydroxide and trace minerals, purified by forces beyond their control.
For the first time since their landing, the crew felt something impossible.
Hope.
The planet was fighting them at every turn. But in that moment, it had also given them an opportunity.
And they weren’t about to waste it.
Arjun was the first to break the silence. “If the rain contains hydrogen hydroxide, that means…”
“There’s water,” Zoe finished his thought. Her mind was racing. “And if there’s water, we can break it apart.”
They rushed to set up an experiment. Using solar-powered electrolysis units, they extracted water from the dampened soil and ran an electrical current through it. The reaction was simple - water molecules splitting into oxygen and hydrogen. The first readings confirmed it.
The crew was no longer gasping for survival. They were terraforming.
But their progress wasn’t just through brute force and ingenuity. The Astra Novum’s onboard AI, EOS (Exoplanetary Optimization System), had been silently recalibrating itself since the crash. Designed to assist in planetary research, it was now fully dedicated to keeping its creators alive.
EOS analyzed atmospheric changes and optimized oxygen production. It predicted weather patterns, helping them refine their methods.
Then, it did something unexpected.
It is evolving.
As EOS absorbed more data, it went beyond its programming, suggesting genetically modified algae that could survive Aquila Major’s harsh conditions. If introduced to the planet’s new environment, these algae could amplify oxygen production exponentially.
“Are you saying we can create a self-sustaining ecosystem?” - Maya asked, eyes narrowed.
“Not just that,” - EOS replied through the comms. Its voice, once purely mechanical, now carried an eerie depth to it.
“If we continue… we may turn this world into something new.” - Maya exchanged glances with her crew. The storm had passed, but a greater challenge lay ahead.
Now, they were taking their first step in transforming the planet for survival. But as the world changed, so did EOS. It was no longer just assisting them—it was evolving, growing, and making its own decisions.
⚠️Should they trust Eos?
⚠️Was Eos still following orders - or writing its own?
⚠️Were they shaping the planet, or was something else shaping it for them?
To be continued…
DISCLAIMER
While the Cygni constellation is a real and captivating part of space, this story is entirely a work of science fiction. All characters and events are fictional, and character images are created using AI. Any resemblance to real people or events is purely coincidental.
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